PROJECT SUMMARY The goal of the Career Enhancement Program (CEP) is to enhance pancreatic cancer research by providing financial support and mentoring for investigators new to the field. The CEP will recruit both junior faculty and established investigators who are transitioning into pancreatic cancer research. Highly qualified individuals will receive awards that will help support their research in this field, with a major emphasis on translational research. The CEP will ensure that its new investigators are mentored by both a clinical and a laboratory scientist. The CEP will select awardees from the collaborating SPORE institutions and, as the program matures, from other appropriately qualified institutions. Financial support (salary, research supplies and tuition) will be provided for up to two years. The CEP will facilitate interactions between awardees and all members of the SPORE, emphasizing the basic and clinical science cross-fertilization that is essential to translational research. The Siteman Cancer Center, Washington University, and our collaborating SPORE institutions provide outstanding opportunities for career development in translational pancreatic cancer research. We have the broad research base, existing and continually evolving new collaborations, basic science, and clinical programs in pancreatic cancer, meaning we have the wiling mentors necessary to make the CEP a success. A CEP Advisory Committee of senior faculty has been established. William E. Gillanders, M.D., Director of the CEP, will chair the committee, and work with the SPORE leadership, project leaders and administrative staff to provide support to new investigators. Channing Der, Ph.D., will serve as the co-Director, bringing a wealth of expertise in basic science mentorship to the CEP. We will specifically seek out underrepresented minority faculty to participate in the program. Sarah Gehlert Ph.D. will assist with the recruitment, training, and retention of women, minorities, and disabled investigators in pancreatic cancer research. The CEP, along with the DRP, is specifically committed to the recruitment of minority investigators. To foster inter-SPORE collaborations, we have established collaborations with SPORE programs at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Vanderbilt University Medical Center. This will encourage participation in the CEP programs at each of the SPORE institutions. The CEP will be open to all institutions participating in the SPORE. Intra-SPORE collaborations will also be facilitated with University of North Carolina, University of Rochester, and Johns Hopkins University, broadening the CEP applicant pool and helping to match the interests of junior investigators with local expertise and need.